


Not a Soldier

by Maisie_Ackerman



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Allura and Lance are Siblings, Alpha! Shiro, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Altean Hunk (Voltron), Altean Lance (Voltron), Altean Matt Holt, Altean Pidge | Katie Holt, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Drug-Induced Heat, Eventual Smut, Galra Keith (Voltron), Galra Shiro (Voltron), Hurt/Comfort, If I'm being honest this is kinda ooc, Keith and Shiro are Siblings, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Mostly Fluff, Multi, Needles, No Actually Mpreg, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Omega! Keith, Sexual Slavery, The Galra have Three Genders, angst in the beginning, mentions of mpreg
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-03
Updated: 2017-08-03
Packaged: 2018-12-10 14:06:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11693226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maisie_Ackerman/pseuds/Maisie_Ackerman
Summary: Keith is a Ygerna, a rare type of Galra that's been enslaved by their own species due to their "submissive nature" and ability to reproduce. When Keith is taken from his home and given as a gift for a Galra commander, chaos ensues and Keith soon finds himself an altean prisoner.Keith is sure the situation is hopeless until he meets the strange Altean prince who is willing to listen to his plight.





	1. Chapter 1

Keith was an Ygerna and a high end one at that.

From the time Keith was little, people were always telling him how pretty he was. People were always saying how silky his hair was and how brightly his eyes shined and what a nice complexion he had. Of course, it was no wonder, given who his mother was, but still, everyone liked to marvel at how pretty Keith looked.

Keith despised it.

From the moment he was born, everything that was ever said to him was a glaring reminder that he was born an Ygerna. At the nursery, when his caretakers greeted him, it was never a simple “Good morning, Keith” or “Sleep Well, Keith?” It was “My, aren't you pretty, Keith” or “Looking gorgeous as ever, Keith” and he was always being fed other gross lines like that and was often the subject of catcalls. His whole life, Keith had had people talking down to him. And that was the least of it.

Being an Ygerna was not an easy thing.

In fact, out of the three genders Galra had, Ygernae were easily the worst.

Galra could be born as one of three genders. Ygernae, Quibi and Warkra. Quibi were the most common. They were soldiers. They made up the majority of the population, although they were far from remarkably as far as the empire was concerned.

What you wanted to be born as, though, was a Warkrum. Warkra were often larger and more muscularly built than other Quibi and they are born fighters, prized by the empire. However, if you asked Keith, the majority of them were brutes. They were strong territorial and aggressive and when two of them got into it, the fights could be downright terrifying. They demanded dominance and respect and threw their weight around, just like their Warkrum poster child, Emperor Zarkon. It was no wonder that most commanders and high ranking officials are Warkra as well.

And then, there were Ygernae. Ygernae were rarest of the three, so naturally, it was just Keith's luck that he’d gotten stuck with the one Galra gender that was treated like weak, helpless damsels, whose only functions were to bare children and look pretty. Of course he was stuck with the gender that got confided to the nursery wings of training centers, where they were raised and groomed to be breed like animals.

Keith guessed he was supposed to feel lucky, being kept in a spacious room, away from battle and danger and provided with everything he needed until the day he matured enough to bare children, like any old Ygerna. But Keith wasn't just any old Ygerna and this was not his idea of a glamorous life. Especially not now. 

Like Keith had said, he was high end and the thing about Ygernae was, that Ygernae weren't considered free people. They were treated fair enough, but if you asked Keith, being an Ygerna meant you were basically just a glorified slave. It wasn't a Ygerna’s choice to stay in a nursery or be breed by a Warkrum or Quibus or bare children for the empire. They were made to. And part of being property of the empire, instead of people, meant that Ygernae could be given as gifts, awarded to commanders and high ranking for serving the empire.

And when a Ygerna was gifted to a commander, that Ygerna was usually _high end._

Which lead to the situation Keith was in now.

Keith’s vessel had just arrived on a war ship at the edge of the galaxy where he was to be presented as a gift to Commander Rytek for his successful invasion and capture of the planet Wrathia.

Keith had wanted nothing less than to be some aggressive Warkrum Commander’s play thing, but he hadn't been given a choice. His mother had begged for them to choose someone else, but Rytek had gotten the pick of the litter and he'd chosen Keith.

When they landed on Rytek’s ship, the commander himself met them in the hanger, a twisted grin on his ugly face.

The moment he laid eyes on the commander, Keith snarled, his fur bristling at the sight of the Galra responsible for ripping him away from his home. His fur stood on end at the thought of what exactly Rytek planned to do to him.

Rytek, however, seemed pleasantly amused by Keith's hissing and fussing and stepped into Keith's space anyway, grinning down at him with large, yellowed fangs.

“Well, well, aren't you a feral one? No need to be so ill-mannered, my gorgeous kitten,” the commander hummed, a chuckle laced into his voice. The commander reached out a hand to pet the fur on Keith's ears and cheek but Keith acted on instinct and bite him.

Rytek screamed in pain and yanked his hand away as the Quibi guards rushed forward to grab ahold of Keith and forced him to his knees.

“I am not yours or anybody else's _kitten_ , and if you touch me again your hand will be the least of your problems!” Keith spat, struggling against the Quibi’s grip on him. He could feel himself shaking but he refused to let anyone see that he was afraid, especially not commander Rytek.

The commander growled indignantly as he glared down at Keith.

“Let's see how feisty you’ll be once you’ve lost control of yourself, then, shall we?” He hissed, waving for a couple more guards to collect Keith, forcing his arms behind his back, “Take him to my chambers and make sure he's ready for me after my meal.”

Keith was taken to Rytek's chambers, as was ordered, but before he could even take a look to see his surroundings, the guards were forcing him to the ground, pressing his face into the floor by the scruff of his neck. Hands grabbed at him roughly and held him down, restraining him from kicking or lashing out with his claws.

Keith thrashed pathetically against the bodies holding him down and growled, yowling in an attempt to get them to back off. However, Keith was ignored and held still as another guard approached, this one was a syringe in hand. Keith gasped and cried out in pain when he felt the sting of the needle pierce the skin of his right arm and tried to back away, only to be held in place.

When it was all over, the needle was extracted and the guards released him, exiting Rytek's chambers in a hurry and locking the doors behind them, closing Keith inside.

Keith suddenly felt sick to his stomach. He had no idea what was in that injection they'd just given him, but he knew it couldn't have been good. Now all he could do was wait for whatever drug he'd been given to take effect.

Now that he was alone, Keith allowed himself to shake with fear. He was all alone, far from home, on a warship, being presented as some kind of sex toy to a bloodthirsty army leader who planned to use and mistreat him however he wished. The only family he had was hundreds, if not thousands of solar systems away and he had no way of getting back to them. And now, to top it all off, he had some unknown drug racing through his system.

Keith choked back a whimpers and tried to stop himself from trembling as he looked around Rytek's chambers.

It was a rather large room and it was rather clean and luxurious as well, with a large bed and soft carpets, but Keith couldn't help but feel unsettled by how dark and cold the room was. He was further displeased by the lack of hiding places to try and avade the commander from, so Keith did his best to curl into the corner and make himself as small and unnoticeable as possible as he waited.

It was fifteen minutes before anything happened.

Keith flattened his ears against his head when he felt the first small cramps form in his lower stomach. They were easy to ignore for the most part and he didn't think much of them until ten minutes later when they turned searing hot.

Keith whimpered in pain, clutching his stomach as the heat spread from his stomach to his entire body. Keith felt hot and the pain in his lower stomach and chest were unbearable. It felt like his heart was trying to beat out of his chest.

It was when a needy, uncomfortable sensation settled in his groin that Keith began to panic. This was a heat… He was going into heat!

Keith's entire body shook with confusion and fear at the realization. How could he be going into heat? He wasn't due for another two weeks, and even then he still had two days of pre-heat to get through before he actually went into heat and he would have known if he'd been in pre-heat for the past two days. He would have felt his body changing. He would have noticed how much hungrier he was than normal and felt the instinctual urge to start building a nest. It was impossible to just skip pre-heat. It was a natural part of the heat-cycle’s process.

That is… unless this heat wasn't natural…

Panic swelled in Keith's chest, causing him to fold further in on himself, his arms covering his head to protect himself.

That drug they’d given him earlier… it was to induce an early heat. Keith had never felt so used and dehumanized and vulnerable in his life.

This was all Ygernae were to Warkra and Quibi. Objects for sex and pleasure. Keith was being used for his heat and his body and he'd never felt so terrified by anything in his life.

“Oh Keith, what did they do to you?”

Keith startled when he heard the voice. He was scared to look up, but then again… that voice… surely it wasn't possible...

Keith allowed himself to look up, through the gap in his arms, at the figure kneeling in front of him. He could only just make out the other’s face through the darkness of the room and his own tears, but the moment he recognized the face, he felt the tension melt from his muscles and he launched himself up at the figure. He wrapped his arms around him and held onto his broad shoulders like his life depended on it. He felt his body shake with relief and help to the few stray sobs that escaped from his mouth.

“Shiro!” Keith cried, burying his face in Shiro’s neck and letting his older brother's familiar, earthy scent wash over him in calming waves. Between his heat and his relief he couldn't think of anything else to say besides his brother’s name, over and over again, like a mantra, “Shiro… Shiro…”

Shiro wrapped his arms around Keith’s waist, gently, and rubbed comforting circles into his back with his prosthetic hand. His other hand went up the rub through Keith's hair, and pet his ears.

“Come on,” Shiro said finally. “Can you walk? We need to go, now, before anyone realizes I’m gone…”

When Shiro pulled away Keith took a gulp of fresh air, giving him just enough sense to find his words again.

“Wait,” Keith frowned in confusion, studying his brother's face, “What are you doing here?”

Shiro gave him a shy smile. As a Warkrum himself, Shiro had been shipped off to a war ship as part of the Galra army a few years ago. Still, Keith felt as close to him as he would if they'd just seen each other yesterday. Shiro was the only person who never looked down on him because of his gender. He was the one person who’d always been there for him. And somehow he was here now, and Keith could have died with relief.

“I heard you were chosen as a gift for Rytek and I couldn't let that happen…” Shiro explained quickly, his face fiercely determined, “I got myself transferred so that I could be here to rescue you when you arrived. Now come on. We gotta go, now.”

Shiro stood quickly, helping Keith to his feet and wrapping an arm around his waist to help him walk. Slowly they made their way to the door.

***

When Shiro finally loaded the two of them and a generous amount of supplies into one of the ship's escape pods, Keith finally allowed himself to sink to the floor, his heat finally taking its toll and turning him into a mostly emotional mess. He sniffled pitifully and mewled in pain. His heat hit him was a fiery vengeance that left him breathless.

Even with his usual Ygerna issued clothes on, Keith felt naked and vulnerable and scared. He hadn't been given any time to prepare for this heat and it left him feeling wary and exposed. He hadn't squirreled away any food or water to supply him for the next five days of heat and he hadn’t found a warm, quiet place to wait it out.

However what concerned him most was the lack of a nest. Nests were pivotal to an Ygerna’s heat. They were a safe space where an Ygerna could feel warm and surrounded by comfort and protection. They were filled with comforting scents and fluffy pillows and blankets that let and Ygerna feel taken care of and safe. But here, Keith was only surrounded by danger and fear and the stress of it was turning his heat into a searing burn.

It hurt.

Keith whimpered as Shiro came over, trying his best to calm his younger brother, but only succeeding in making Keith whine and cry at his efforts. The best Shiro could do was wrap Keith in the thermal blanket he'd gathered for their journey and offer him his jacket for a comforting scent. It wasn't much of a nest, but it was the best they could do.

It was just as Shiro was starting the engines of the escape pod that they felt the first jolt and heard the first crash. Just outside their ship, they could hear alarms blaring, signaling that the ship was under attack.

Shiro cursed and started the pod’s engines and punching in the code to open the hangar doors.

Shiro had expected perhaps a few ships from Wrathia, seeking revenge for the recent capture of their planet, but what he hadn't expected to find was Voltron, in all its glory, just as it drew its magnificent sword and set to work attacking Rytek's ship just as they escaped.

Shiro was stunned by the sight of it. Once they had finished their initial attack, Voltron split itself into its five lions, each going to work taking down a separate part of the ship. The Red and Green lions went to work, easily cutting down the fighter ships sent to combat them, as the Blue, Yellow and Black lions began taking out Rytek's main ship.

Shiro was only snapped out of his amazement when a blast from the Red Lion nearly hit their escape pod, sending them flying in the opposite direction.

Both Shiro and Keith were tossed around and shaken, but Shiro quickly regained use of the controls and tried to fly them to safety.

However escape was made difficult. The Red Lion had already locked onto them as a target and began to take chase, firing shots from its canon whenever it was in range. The blasts shook their ship and made it near impossible to try and navigate.

When a blast finally struck their pod’s wing and alarms sounded in the cabin of their ship, and Shiro knew there was no way they could fly.

“No,” Shiro growled, hopelessly trying to do something, anything, to help them escape, “No!”

Behind him, Keith cried pitifully, still in pain.

There was no escape now. Rytek's ship had been destroyed. The red lion had them cornered.

They had been captured.


	2. Chapter 2

If you’d asked Lance, he’d say his first time out with Red went pretty well. Not amazing… but pretty well. He’d taken down a couple fighter planes, he’d captured an enemy drone, and he didn’t even crash into anyone this time! Lance counted that as a win. However, if you asked Lance’s father… Well, you’d probably hear a different story.

“You need to learn to listen Lance,” King Alfor warned him, “The red lion is more than a ship, it is part of Voltron. You are part of a team now, meaning you have to learn to listen to your teammates.”

“But we took down the ship!” Lance protested, “And I captured a Galra drone!”

“No,” his father corrected, “You wandered away from your team, chasing an unmanned drone when I told you to fall back into formation. There’s a difference.”

“But you heard Rilla in the last conference meeting” Lance said, “We don’t understand enough about this new Galra tech. Samples like these unmanned drones could be valuable.”

“I understand why you did it, Lance,” his father assured him, sounding tired, “but you need to learn to work with your team. You’re new at this and I wasn’t meant to fly the Black Lion. Right now, trust and sticking together is more important than ever.”

Lance scowled. This sucked. When he’d first agreed to pilot the red lion of Voltron, he thought it would be fun. Sure, the whole, Zarkon betraying their planets’ alliance and waging war on Altea thing wasn’t fun, but flying a lion of Voltron? Lance thought for sure that would kick as so when the opportunity to pilot the lion presented itself, Lance took it without a second thought.

However, it wasn’t long after that Lance realized he was probably the last person on Altean his father wanted in the pilot's seat of the Red Lion. In fact, Lance was more than convinced he’d wanted it to be his sister, Allura. She was older and more responsible than Lance and he understood why his dad would trust her more with the temperamental lion. However, Red hadn’t budged for her.

And it wasn’t as if Alfor had given Lance a shot to try out Red or anything, the fact that Red had chosen him had happened completely on accident. He’d just been down in the hangers talking battle strategy with Allura when the lion roared for him. They’d both thought that maybe Red had changed his mind about Allura, but to both of their surprise, it had been Lance that she wanted. Lance had no idea why…

It was when they went to tell their father the news that Lance realized that his father found his joining the team to be nothing but a disappointment. Lance could see it written all over his face. The apprehension, the wariness, the displeasure.

Lance had been sure he could change his father’s mind, if he were just given the chance, but it seemed that he was still King Alfor’s least favorite paladin, even after their big first mission.

Lance and his teammates were interrupted when one of their top Alchemists, a young Altean named Matt, rushed over, seemingly out of breath, catching all five paladins’ attentions.

“King Alfor,” Matt said in a hurry, “There’s something you should see. It’s urgent. It’s about the ship the Red Lion picked up.”

Alfor’s brow creased with concern, “What about the drone? Is there a problem?”

“Sire, there is no drone,” Matt said, his voice gravely serious. He looked panicked, “What Red picked up was an escape pod. And there are Galra inside..!”

Lance was speechless. Galra? Here? There was no way… Lance’s surprise was mirrored on the face of his father, whose eyes widened in shock.

“But that’s impossible,” Alfor said, “It’s against the Galra code to allow themselves to get captured. They’d kill themselves before they’d let themselves be taken here. That is the way of all Galra soldiers.”

Matt shook his head, “I don’t understand it either my lord, but the two are both very much alive. We’ve taken them into custody. We believe one of them is hurt, but the other we are taking for questioning...”

Lance immediately snapped out of his shock and spoke up.

“Father, if he’s Galra, perhaps I could help-” Alfor, however, quickly cut him off.

“Lance, now is not the time for your cultural studies,” Alfor said, his face deadly serious, “I suggest you go and find your friends. I will deal with the Galra...”

Lance frowned but didn’t say anything more as he turned and left the hanger.

It wasn’t fair. There were very few that knew more about Galra culture, anatomy, physiology and social hierarchy than Lance. Sure, many Alteans knew a fair bit about Galra from back when their alliance was formed, but very few knew the knitty-gritty the way Lance did. His knowledge could very well be invaluable in situations like this.

Ever since Lance was little, cultural studies had been a passion of his. Some believed it was in his blood, seeing as how he came from a long line of diplomates, but truthfully, Lance just liked learning about people. He liked knowing what different peoples from different planets were line and what they believed in and what made them different.

Of course, some societies and creatures caught Lance’s attention more than others. One of the most fascinating, in his opinion, was the Galra. Lance didn’t know if it was because they were at war or if he was trying to see what had turned them so bad or what, but he felt the need to learn about them. He wanted to know what made a Galra a Galra.

When Lance left the hanger, he stripped away his Paladin armor and immediately went looking for Pidge and Hunk.

Pidge was Matt’s younger sister, and her father also worked for the royal family as a chief technician, so she and her family lived in the castle in one of the servants wings. Similarly, Hunk came from a long line of royal cooks and was learning the trade himself, meaning he resided in the same area.

This meant was the the servant’s wings of the castle saw a lot of Prince Lance.

Lance didn’t have to look very long before Pidge and Hunk were coming to find him, hurrying down the corridor in his direction. Hunk looked visibly nervous while Pidge looked as serious and determined as always.

“Hey! Did you hear about the Galra?” was the first thing out of Pidge’s mouth, “I can’t believe you actually captured two real, live Galra soldiers by accident. How is that even possible?”

Lance squinted at the younger Altean, “First off, how do you know it was an accident. Maybe I knew full well I’d captured two of the enemy. Second off, how do you even know about the Galra?”

Pidge rolled her eyes, “Two questions, one answer: Matt. Duh. I’m linked in to his communication feed. He really shouldn’t leave his communicators lying around.”

“Woah, um, isn’t that against the rules? I definitely think that’s against the law or something. And is anyone else concerned there are two, real, live, bloodthirsty Galra here in this castle right now!?” Hunk rambled, his voice sounding panicked.

Lance put a hand on Hunk’s shoulder, “C’mon buddy, relax. I mean, this is Pidge were talking about and we both know Pidge doesn’t get caught. And as for the Galra, it’s fine. There’s no way either of them are going to escape and even if they do, not all Galra are evil, bloodthirsty killing machines. They’re individuals just like you and me. I mean, there’s even a type of Galra genetically designed to be caregivers and nurturers. Did you know that?”

“Yeah caregivers and nurturers of little, tiny, evil Galra warriors,” Hunk muttered. “I’m just saying, for the record, I don’t like this.”

“Well it’s a good thing you don’t have to be anywhere near it then.” Lance muttered. “Because until my father finishes questioning the healthy Galra, the holding wing is pretty much under wraps.”

Even as Lance said this he looked unhappy. He wanted nothing more than to be in that wing, in that room with his father. To be able to talk to a real Galra and ask them his questions. But there was no doubt in Lance’s mind that it was his fascination with the creatures that was the very thing keeping him out of that room. His father didn't trust that he would do his best to help put an end to the Galra empire. If he was more passionate about the need to crush his enemies, Lance was sure his father would have him with him.

In fact, Lance was guessing that Allura was with him right now as he questioned their prisoners.

Pidge, seeming to sense his annoyance, smirked at him, the little fucker.

“Aw,” she teased, “Poor Prince Lance feeling left out? How sad.”

Lance glared at her, “Hey pidge? Shut your quiznak.”

“Whatever,” Pidge said, “Go be mopey then. I was going to help you with your little problem, but I suppose I’ll just shut my quiznak instead.”

She turned to leave but Lance cut her off.

“Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait,” he said quickly before pausing. “...What did you have in mind?”

***

Fifteen minutes later, Pidge had her computer set up in the main engery control rooms in the castle, with criss crossing wires going in every which way, all leading up to the main Balmarian crystal that powered the ship. Pidge had opened up a metal grate and was playing with some wires inside. Every once in awhile Hunk would suggest something to her, pointing at another wire and she'd agree and fiddle some more.

Lance frowned.

“Does someone want to fill me in on what exactly is going on?” Lance asked, making his two best friends look up at him.

Pidge sighed, not so much in a way that said he should know what they were doing, but in a way that meant she didn’t feel like explaining but did anyway, pointing to the panel that were working out of, “These wires here,” she explained slowly, “they carry power from the balmara crystal to the holding wing of the castle to power the SS-Wache Automats*. Then those same signals come back through these wires to carry that footage to the surveillance room on the upper floors. However, I know for a fact that no one’s ever in that room, so we are intercepting those signals to see what’s going on in those rooms.”

“So… We’re accessing footage from the security mechanisms, basically?” Lance raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah, basically,” Pidge confirmed.

“So why don’t you just say that?” Lance asked and Pidge groaned, rolling her eyes.

“You’re impossible,” Pidge said, going back to her work, “Just a few more adjustments… and… one galra interrogation coming right up.”

Pidge clicked a button on her portal-screen* and an handful of image popped up. Most of them seemed to be copies of the same room over and over again, but two images stood out among the rest. In each one, lance could see something moving. Pidge enlarged the two images as Lance and Hunk both crowded in next to her.

Lance almost missed the bit of movement in the first image. At first glance it just seems to be another one of the castle’s holding cells, a plain white room with a small alcove to the left where the stuck the prisoner’s cot. There were nothing out of the ordinary about it, until Lance looked closely at the cot and noticed something moving under it. Lance couldn't make out much of what it was, but it seemed the creature had crawled under there as a hiding spot, having taken the sheet off it's cot down there with it. Lance was curious as to what the Galra was doing down there, but his attention was quickly stolen away by the second image.

In the second image, a tall, muscular Galra paced back and forth around the room, it's large, catlike ears pinned back against his head. The short black fur on its head bristled and puffed up.

Lance’s heart really started to race when, a moment later, the galra stopped and turned to face the door, which Lance could only assume meant it had opened.

When Lance’s father appeared on screen, the Galra seemed to hiss or make some kind of feral noise that had the guards pointing their guns in it's direction. However Alfor waved his hand for them to put them away and turned back to the Galra, his back to the security mechanisms.

“What are they saying!?” Lance shook Pidge by the shoulders impatiently, “Why can't I hear them? What are they saying!?”

“I don't know!” Pidge jerked out of his grip, giving him an annoyed glare, “Give me a second! It might be hard to get audio.”

Pidge turned back to the open panel next to her portal-screen and started putting out more wires, leaving Lance and Hunk to watch the silent interrogation.

Lance could see the two arguing, the Galra puffing up and stalking closer to his father as he clearly yelled at him. Lance's father however, never flinched, immune to the Galra’s intimidation tactics as he responded to whatever the Galra had said.

The Galra looked at his father for a long moment before slinking back, clearly growling.

His father continued to talk, the Galra spitting back replies angrily and sneering at him as he continued to pace around the room like a caged animal.

When Alfor said something that had the Galra widening his eyes and snapping his attention towards the king fully, Lance turned to Pidge. “Pidge!! Hurry up, we need audio, now!!”

“Okay! Okay, give me a second to just…” she trailed off in concentration just as a crackling sound came from Pidge’s portal-screen, which soon became understandable voices.

“It's nothing we want to do,” Lance heard his father speaking, “we simply ask for your cooperation.”

The Galra snarled, “And if I don't you’ll hurt my friend. I thought Alteans prided themselves on being a fair people.”

“It would be a shame to hurt your friend,” Alfor agreed, “It wouldn't be something enjoyable for us. But these are times of war and we can't always afford to be hospitable.” Alfor was silent for a beat before he spoke again, his voice lower, “Tell me, how old is your friend? He's only a teenager by Galra standards, correct? About eighteen or so?”

“Stay away from him,” the Galra snarled, his face twisted with malic. “You hurt him and I swear I will kill you myself.”

Lance turned his attention to the second screen, realizing that they were talking about the Galra who was hiding under his cot. Lance frowned when he realized there was a kid, not much younger than him under that cot, probably terrified…

“They wouldn't actually hurt him..?” Hunk asked, concerned despite having just said the Galra were bloodthirsty monsters just a moment ago. “The other Galra, I mean… your father's just bluffing… right?”

“No, they won't hurt anyone Hunk,” Lance assured him. “The torture of captive enemies is strictly forbidden under Altean law and under the alliance of Voltron. Not even my father is powerful enough to change that. However… these guys clearly don't know that.”

Alfor’s voice put an end to their conversation, pulling their attentions back to the screen.

“We wouldn't have to if you gave us the information we ask for, but since you're not willing to cooperate, we’ll have to go looking for information elsewhere,” With that, Alfor turned, his cape billowing behind him as he exited the room.

The Galra immediately lunged forward as if to try and tackle Alfor, but the guards stopped him, grabbing him by the arms and twisting them behind his back, forcing him to his knees.

“Just leave him alone!” The Galra cried angrily, sounding somewhat desperate, “He has nothing to do with this, please! He doesn't know anything! He's not a soldier, he’s an Ygerna! He's just an Ygerna!!”

Alfor reappeared on the screen, standing in the doorway as he looked down at the Galra prisoner.

The Galra prisoner looked up at him almost pleadingly as he huffed out, “He’s just an Ygerna and he’s in heat. An interrupted heat no less, he’s already hurting and scared, leave him out of this.”

Lance blanched at that announcement, looking back the the other screen where the younger Galra was hiding. But not just any Galra. A Ygerna. The rarest type of Galra there was. And not only that, but the poor thing was in the midst of an interrupted heat. Lance frowned, his stomach knotting at the thought of it.

Alfor and the Galra stared at each other for a moment longer before Alfor turned away, leaving the Galra soldier yelling and cursing at him as he went.

Pidge disconnected the audio.

“So did you find out everything you wanted to?” Pidge asked, her expression slightly grim as well.

“Man, that was intense…” Hunk said, looking up at Lance. “You okay there buddy? You're looking a little pale…”

Lance was thinking about what the Galra soldier had said. An Ygerna… In heat… An interrupted heat… An interrupted heat… Lance thought back to chasing the escape pod out in space earlier that day. He thought about shooting at it until he eventually hit it's wing. An interrupted heat…

“I need to go check on the hurt Galra,” Lance finally said, standing suddenly, “The Ygerna. The one under the cot.”

“Woah, what?” Hunk looked at him with wide eyes as he stood as well, “Slow down. You mean you want to go see one of those angry, bloodthirsty, cat-monster things?”

“Again, they're not bloodthirsty, especially not that one, ” Lance said, aggravated, waving in the direction of the first image, “It's an Ygerna.”

Pidge looked confused, “Yeah, they kept saying that but what exactly is an Ygerna?”

Lance sighed. He really didn't feel like explaining right now when he knew he should be finding the hurt Ygerna, but he began the explanation anyway.

“Ygerna are a really rare type of Galra. We have tons of books about them in the castle library,” Lance explained, “They're the only type of Galra that can give birth to little mini Galra, which is why it's so weird that one is here, because normally they're well hidden and protected and stuff.”

“Wait,” Hunk said, a look of concentration on his face, “but if an Ygerna can have kids… and that Galra called the Ygerna a he… does that mean male Galra can get pregnant..?”

“Focus Hunk,” Pidge said, looking back at Lance, “And why exactly do you need to find this Ygerna? And what exactly is this heat business they were talking about?”

Lance groaned in frustration, his cheeks turning red. The last thing he wanted to be do right now was give his friends the Galra Sex Talk.

“According to the books I’ve read on the subject, every month when a Ygerna…” Lance trailed off, muttering, his cheeks bright red.

“Huh?” Pidge asked.

“When they… ya know… like… make an egg…” Lance muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“You mean ovulate?” Pidge asked, knitting her eyebrows in confusion.

“Yes! _That_ ,” Lance said, thankful Pidge had said it instead of him, “Every month when _that_ happens, Ygerna will go into what’s called a heat, where they're overcome with the need to be mated and basically wanna get banged by anyone who's will in order to try and make a baby.”

“Seriously, you have no trouble saying that but you're too embarrassed to say the word _ovulate_?” Pidge looked at him, unimpressed.

Lance waved her off and continued, “It's supposed to be a time of comfort and warmth and love for an Ygerna. While in heat, the Ygerna needs to feel safe and well taken care of.”

“Okay…” Pidge said slowly, “and what does any of this have to do with you and this Ygerna? You don't wanna, like… fuck the Galra, do you?”

“What!?” Lance gaped at her, “God, Pidge- No! God!!”

“Okay, okay!” Pidge put her hands up in mock surrender, “Just making sure!”

“No,” Lance shook his head, “What I’m trying to get to is that I read this book about Galran biology and the Galra soldier mentioned something I read in that book. An interrupted heat. It means that his heat has gone, like, bad or something.”

“Gone bad?” Hunk asked, “What does that mean? Is that bad? It sounds bad. It has bad in the title.”

“The book said that when an Ygerna goes into heat they have to feel safe, so if they don't feel safe their heat, like, puts itself on pause so that they can get away,” Lance said, “but once the interruption is over, their body tries to go back into heat and it gets all screwed up. Turns into something called Heat Sickness.”

“Okay,” Hunk said, “Um, what's Heat Sickness?”

Lance paused, “I, um, don't really remember… I kinda only skimmed that part of the book. I just know that it's bad. Like. Really bad.”

That's when Pidge piped up, “Oh. This I’ve heard of actually. Most species call them breeding pains though and they’re pretty fucking awful. We're talking nausea, delirium, fever, anxiety, skittishness."

“Okay…” Hunk said after a moment, “So you wanna help. But how? What can you do for it? I mean, You’ve never dealt with a Galra in heat before, have you? And, I mean, you don't know anything about this Galra. You could get hurt.”

Lance frowned. He knew Hunk was right. Despite how many books he'd read on the subject (which was a lot, because Lance had to admit, it was just a little hot) he wasn't well equipped to deal with the situation. Still, he felt… guilty…

“But I’m the one who interrupted his heat…” Lance said, dejectedly.

Hunk and Pidge both gave him a confused look.

“The Ygerna and the soldier were trying to escape in an escape pod and I thought it was a drone. I went after them. I shot the wing off their ship and I captured them. If that's not enough to interrupt a heat, I don't know what it,” Lance huffed, “I feel… responsible. He's hurting because of me…”

Hunk frowned, “I hate to point out the obvious here, but we are talking about an enemy soldier here. Well, not a soldier, but an enemy species… a species that wants us dead.”

“Zarkon wants us dead,” Lance argued, “This guy is a kid. He's two years younger than us. He was trying to escape from his own kind. I seriously doubt he wants us dead.”

“Fine,” Pidge said, folding her arms across her chest, “let’s say that is true, and you could somehow help this Ygerna thing. You still don't know what room it's in, or the passcode that will get you in there.”

Lance frowned, thinking about it for a moment before getting an idea.

“Okay, yeah, I don't,” Lance grinned, “But I think I know someone who does.”

***

Keith woke up, shivering violently and covered in sweat, laying on a cot in a shiny white room.

It was… bright… so bright. It hurt his eyes. He shut them tight and covered his face with his arms. His bones felt like lead and his lower stomach felt like it was being squeezed tightly. He groaned in pain and curled in on himself.

It was so hot.

So bright…

Keith's heart pounding in his chest and he couldn't help but shake. He wasn't usually this easily frightened or shaken but right now Keith felt like his anxiety was consuming him. Threatening to overwhelm him. His chest tightening painfully, making it hard to breath.

Where was Shiro…? Where was he?? Why was he alone? Keith let out a woeful chirp* for his brother, hoping the small Ygerna cry would reach his brother and lead him to him. When no one came he began to let out more warbled chirps that dissolved into mourningful, terrified sobs.

He was alone. He was in pain. Any moment now some guard would come in and hurt him. He would have no way to defend himself. He felt utterly vulnerable.

He needed to hide.

With what little strength he had left, Keith pushed himself off the bed, looking around the room. His vision was hazy and unfocused but his instincts drew him down to the floor. The cool tiles felt good against his heated skin.

Keith's muscles acted of their own accord, his brain too foggy to process much as he grabbed the sheets from his cot and quickly crawled underneath it where it was cool and dark and much better than the bright room around him.

Keith quickly pulled the sheets around him and settled in. When Keith's senses cleared enough, he looked around him and realized he'd made a rather flimsy, pathetic excuse for a makeshift nest. Keith let out another sob at the sight of his work, depressed at seeing the lack of soft blankets and pillows and complete lack of anything with his mother's or older brother's scent. He was surrounded by foreign objects and possessions with no one to turn to. He couldn't help the tears that spilled down his cheeks.

Keith cried himself out, settled in his very meager nest, letting out loud, hollow chirps every so often in the hopes that they would lead Shiro to him.

Only Shiro never came and Keith’s frayed emotional state exhausted him until he eventually fell into a restless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *SS-Wache Automats - Altean security cameras 
> 
> *Portal-Screen - Altean Laptop 
> 
> *Chirping - How an Ygerna calls their Warkrum when in need. If not their mate, then the head Warkrum in their family, which would be Shiro for Keith. If you've ever heard the sound a cheetah makes, that's what it sounds like.
> 
> Thank you to everyone that's commented, Subscribed and Kudosed!!!


	3. Chapter 3

Shiro was pacing in his room when he heard the first chirp. It was a faint, delicate sound, like something you might hear a small animal make. It was quiet and barely there but Shiro recognized it regardless: 

It was an Ygerna's chirp. The sound one made when they were lonely or scared or in need of help. It was an Ygerna's way of calling for their Warkrum. This typically meant their mate, but being unmated still, Keith was calling for Shiro, the Warkrum of his family, who he trusted dearly. 

God… Who knew what those Altean bastards were doing to Keith right now... Shiro felt his body go hot with rage at the idea of anyone hurting his brother. The boy who he'd promised that he wouldn't let anything bad happen to him. The one person he swore to protect no matter what. 

And now he was helpless to save him… 

Shiro growled and slammed a fist against the door, his ears flattened against his skull. He’d get to Keith. Somehow. And when he did, whoever dared lay a finger on him would regret it dearly.

It was then that the door slide open...

* * *

“Father, we can’t actually torture the injured Galra captive,” Allura felt compelled to remind her father after he exited the holding cell, “It’s against the alliance of Voltron. As the paladin of the Back Lion, I believe you and the Altean people have a duty to uphold the laws set by-”

“Allura,” Alfor quickly hushed his daughter, “I am well aware of the laws of our alliance and I have every intention of following them. However, since these laws were laid down after Zarkon betrayed Voltron and our people, the Galra have no way of knowing this. If the soldier believes his friend is in danger, he’ll hopefully hand over whatever information he has on the empire.”

Allura relaxed, “I see...”

“We’ll allow him to stew for a while before trying to speak with him again, meanwhile, I will see if any information was pulled from the prisoner’s escape pod,” Alfor explained. “I would like you to stay here with the guards in case he decides to talk before I get back”

Allura tensed, “Me..?”

Allura thought back to her father’s questioning of the prison earlier. The way he growled and bared his teeth like some kind of wild animal and how he had pinned his ears back against his head like he was preparing to lash out made Allura waver. She was not someone who easily backed down, but even for a Galra, this particular soldier was…  intimidating. He was somehow fiercer than the rest. However, Allura didn’t back down. 

“Alright,” She said, “I’ll send one of the guards for you should anything happen.”

Alfor nodded, smiling proudly at his daughter before kissing her temple and leaving down the corridor. 

Allura watched her father disappears around the corner before letting out a soft sigh. Allura would be lying if she said she didn’t feel the pressure of all the new responsibilities her father had been putting on her, but she understood why. It was a time of war and her father needed her. Her people needed her. But still… It made her wish that he’d consider sharing some of the responsibility with her younger brother, Lance, as well, although she knew why he abstained from doing so. Lance was so young… he was practically still a kid. It was a lot already, allowing him to pilot a lion of Voltron.

Allura’s thoughts of her brother were quickly chased away by a loud  _ BANG!  _ Which sounded from the other side of the door, causing Allura to jump. 

Right… The prisoner was still there, fuming over what he believes they are doing to his friend. The thought was strange to Allura. Galra soldiers were rarely this close to one another… It made her wonder…. After a moment, she pursed her lips and turned to the door, punching the access code into the keypad and watching to doors slid open. 

As they did, Allura watched the Galra soldier’s eyes widen momentarily, before slinking away from the door, a low growl resonating from deep in his throat. Allura felt herself water for a moment before steeling herself up. 

“Galra Soldier,” She said, her tone firm, “I am Princess Allura of Altean. I’d like you to answer a few of my questions.”

“I’ll tell you what I told your king,” The Galra replied, his voice equally as firm, “I will not betray the Galra Empire for one which has been our enemy for years. I may not loyal to the Galra Empire, but that does not mean that I trust you.”

Allura paused for a moment, processing that. 

“If that is the case,” Allura finally said, “Then I will not ask you of your empire. I’ll ask you about yourself.”

The Galra Soldier looked suspicious but his ears raised slightly from their place, flattened against his head. Allura took that as a sign to continue. 

“What’s your name?” She asked, calmly. 

The Galra was silent for a very long moment, and Allura thought that perhaps he was choosing not to respond, but after a pause, the other finally huffed out, “Shiro.”

Allura nodded, “Alright. Tell me, Shiro, why are you not ‘loyal to the Galra Empire’ as you say?”

Shiro’s yellow eyes narrowed before he turned them to the floor instead. His ears flattening back down and the fur around his neck and bristled as if he were recalling a very unpleasant memory. 

“One would have to be blind not to see how the way the Empire has imprisoned the free people of this universe,” Shiro muttered back, “Even it’s own people have been made slaves to the Empire.”

Allura frowned, “It’s own people…? What do you mean-”

Allura was cut short when Shiro’s ears suddenly shoot up as if he had heard something she hadn’t. After a moment of silence, Allura heard what sounded like the chirping of some kind of small bird, followed by a pained whine. Shiro’s eyes widened and seemed to fill with worry and anguish.

“Keith...” Shiro muttered worriedly, before bolting upwards, causing Allura to stumble back in surprise. As soon as she saw him move towards the door, she raised a hand and ordered it shut using her altean connection to the castle. Shiro slammed into the door as it closed, pounding on the door with his fist in frustration. 

Allura frowned, “Your friend, Keith, is it? What is your connection with him?”

Shiro turned to her, his expression hard and angry. “None of your business.”

“You seem to care for him quite a lot,” She pointed out. 

Shiro merely glared at her. 

“If you tell me, I can do what I can to help you,” Allura offered. “You want to see him and make sure he’s alright, is that correct? We both have information on Keith that the other would like to know, so why don’t you tell me what you know, and I’ll tell you what I know.”

Shiro let out a small scoff before turning away from the door to look back at Allura once more. Allura nodded, choosing to take this as an acceptance to the offer

“So,” Allura pressed once more, “What is your relationship with Keith?”

“Little brother,” Shiro bit out. 

“I see,” Allura nodded in sudden understanding. Allura understood what it was like to have a little brother, even if he was kind of annoying at time. However, Shiro’s urge to protect his friend and desperate need to find him made much more sense now. Allura knew that she’d feel the same say if she thought someone were hurting Lance… 

“Now tell me what you know,” Shiro demanded. 

Allura shook her head, “First, you tell me one more thing.”

Shiro bristled but waited for her to continue. 

“Why were you and Keith trying to run away in that escape pod,” Allura asked. 

Shiro’s face went dark at the reminder. 

“If I tell you this,” Shiro said, “Then you have to tell me what’s happening to my brother  _ and  _ you have to bring something to him for me. Got it?” 

Allura nodded. 

Shiro sighed and paced for a few moments before finally settling down on the cot and taking a deep breath before beginning his tale.

* * *

 

By the time Lance finally found the book he was looking for in the Castle library and snuck into the holding wing, it had been quite a while later. 

Lance glanced around the corner as he snuck through the holding wing, trying to make his footsteps as quiet as possible, something that wasn't easy in a creaky old castle. Luckily, he hadn't run into anybody yet...

No sooner had he thought that, that Lance heard the whoosh of a door opening and ducked around a corner. However, he relaxed when he spotted Allura emerging from one of the holding cells down the hall. 

Perfect. Exactly who he was looking for. 

Lance took several steps forward to confront his sister before he noticed the troubled look in his sister’s eyes, pausing before hurrying forward to place a hand on his sister's arm.

“Allura?” Lance asked, concerned, “What's wrong? What happened?”

Allura was startled out of her daze by the sudden touch to her arm and focus her gaze on her brother, frowning. 

“It's nothing, don’t worry about it…” she said, quickly, regaining herself. She gave Lance a disapproving look. “What are you doing here? Father said no one is allowed in the holding wing except authorized officials.”

Lance frowned, “You’re here.”

“ _ I’ve  _ been authorized,” Allura frowned back. 

“Well, I’ve been authorized, too,” Lance said, “by order of the Prince.”

“That is not a proper means of authorization.” Allura folded her arms, unimpressed. 

“Whatever,” Lance waved his sister off, “I’m on an important mission and I need your help. You wouldn't happen to know what room they're keeping the injured Galra in, would you..?”

“I would,” Allura replied. 

“Cool!” Lance grinned. 

“I never said I was going to tell you, Lance,” Allura replied, “that room is strictly off limits to everyone without authorization,  _ from the king.” _

“I know!” Lance groaned, exasperated, “but this is important, Allura! I have to get in there. This Galra. I think he's…” Lance choose his words carefully, “ _ hurt _ . I’ve read about this kind of thing before, ‘Lura,  and if we do nothing, he could get seriously sick. I can help him but you gotta help me first.” 

Allura turned to her brother a slight look of alarm and concern on her face. She frowned deeply, looking back at the door she'd just emerged from before turning her gaze down to a piece of cloth she had bundled in her arms which Lance hadn’t noticed before

“Fine,” Allura sighed. 

“Please, Allura, just trust me on this, just this onc- Wait. what?” Lance blinked, not having expected his sister to give in so easily. He narrowed his eyes in suspicion, “Really?”

“Yes, really Lance,” Allura frowned, “On two conditions.”

Lance frowned, “Should have known, there’s always a catch.”

“Hush,” Allura scolded, “My first condition-” she shoved the black bundle of cloth in her arms at her brother, “-you bring this to him.”

Lance fumbled with a cloth for a moment before bundling it in his arms and frowning back at his sister. “And condition number two?”

“Be careful, Lance,” Allura told him, “Take one of the palace drones with you and have it wait outside the door, just in case you need help. And if that Galra starts to act aggressive, get out, okay?”

“Okay, okay, Allura,” Lance frowned, “Stop mothering me. I got it. Now room number and passcode, please.”

Allura sighed once more,  “It’s room S17 and the passcode is G88701.” 

“Thanks, Allura,” Lance offered his sister a genuine smile of thanks before starting off down the hall in a jog. 


End file.
